Alternate Schooling
by DragonMaster65
Summary: Zutara Week 2010: AU. In a world where benders are the high class citizens, Katara is terrified to leave her family in the Warrior's district to go to Bender's School in the high-class bender's district. R&R. Kiddie Zutara


"But I don't want to go to bender's school!" young Katara cried. "Why can't I go to school with Sokka?" The little eleven year old looked at her mother and father with tears in her eyes, not understanding why she was different from the rest of her family.

Kya smiled gently at her daughter, kneeling and taking her hands in her own. "Katara, you're going to go to a school that's even better than Sokka's! You're going to get to learn how to bend water. Doesn't that excite you at all?" She asked cheerfully. Katara shook her head violently, tears streaming down her face.

Sokka scowled from his seat in the kitchen. "Katara," he said, "you should be happy you get to go to bender's school. All I learn at school is how to do math and read and write. Being a bender you'll always get special privileges." He spat on the ground –Hakoda glared at him- and muttered, "You'll at least get to move out of the stupid warrior's district one day."

Kya shot a glare at her complaining son before turning back to Katara. "Don't worry. You'll be happy there!"

"But it's boarding school!" Katara complained.

Hakoda patted her on the head. "It's better that way sweetie. You can get out of here and go to the bender's district of Republic City! Won't that be nice?"

Katara dejectedly nodded her head. Hakoda smiled weakly at Kya, hoping Katara could escape the world that they and Sokka would have to live in.

ooOOooOOooOOoo

Zuko bounced up and down in his seat. He was home for the week, visiting his parents and sister before both he and she went back to school. It would be Azula's first year and she was chomping at the bit to go. "Mo-o-o-o-om!" he yelled loudly. "When are we leaving again?"

Ursa poked her head into the living room, in which was sprawled Zuko and Azula's boxes and things for school. She tiredly replied, "Not for another two hours honey. Why don't you and Azula double check your rooms to see that you didn't miss anything?"

Azula groaned loudly and looked over at Zuko. "We already checked twice already, didn't we Zuko?" she complained. "I want to get to school and impress all the other Firebenders!"

Zuko stuck his tongue out at his sister. "Why do they have to be Firebenders? There's loads of Waterbenders and Earthbenders too. There's even a few Airbenders who finally gave in and came to Republic City!" he stated matter-of-factly.

His sister shook her head at the first mention of the other bending disciplines. "Nope. Dad married a Firebender. His dad married a Firebender. Being one of the ruling, pureblood Firebending families in Republic City we've _got_ to stick with Firebenders," she said snobbishly.

"That's stupid," Zuko muttered. "I don't care so long as they're pretty."

ooOOooOOooOOoo

Clutching at her brother's hand Katara nervously walked around the tour. Their guide pointed to a large classroom with intricate scrollwork of different bending forms. A class of Firebenders was practicing some simple forms, a flame dancing around in each of their hands. "And this is one of the classrooms we use for the beginning students. They work in large groups until a Sifu takes them under their personal training," he said, sounding bored and detached.

The rest of the tour moved on, Sokka with them, having shook off his sister's hand, but Katara stayed behind for a second to watch the students inside. In the classroom, one boy looked over and his golden eyes met her blue ones. He gave a small wave, his flame vanishing in a puff of smoke. She cautiously waved back. He looked back up at the Sifu leading the class to receive a scolding for losing his concentration, and when he looked back to the door the girl had vanished, run off to go back to her family.

ooOOooOOooOOoo

Katara's family had left. Once the tour had been completed and they'd signed her into the custody of the school they had said their goodbyes and departed. She poked her head out of her room, trying to see what was remotely familiar to her home in the warrior's district of Republic City. Someone else poked their head out of their room and she recognized them to be the golden-eyed boy she'd seen earlier. She squealed when he saw her and jumped back into her room.

"Wait, hey you!" he called. She cautiously stepped out of her room, looking at her feet. The boy ran over from across the hall and stood in front of her. He stuck out his hand in front of her face and said brightly, "Hi! I'm Zuko. Who're you?"

She looked up and shook his hand tentatively. "I'm Katara and I'm new here," she said softly. "Tell me, will I always miss my parents and my brother?"

Zuko shrugged. "I dunno Katara. If you had a friend you wouldn't miss your family as much," he replied chipperly.

She scrunched her face up in disgust. "Well I don't have any friends. They all went to my brother's school back in the warrior's district."

Zuko frowned. "I'm sorry," he apologized. He added after a moment's thought, "Do you want to be my friend?" He smiled hopefully.

Katara thought for a moment before she nodded. "Yeah, okay!"

He smiled brightly, his golden eyes sparkling. "Totally cool! We're gonna be best friends!" He grabbed her hand and pulled her down the hallway in a happy, childish run.

ooOOooOOooOOoo

**Author's Note:**

Okay, so I kinda took the idea that there are anti-bender movements in the new Republic City and flipped it so that the benders are the high class citizens. It's kinda a subtheme here that you can especially feel with Sokka. He's jealous that Katara gets the chance to be better than their family is right now in the Warrior's district. I hope that the whole convo with Azula really gets that feeling of superiority of the benders, especially the firebenders who can make their own element. I really feel like I could keep writing and writing and writing with this AU. Maybe if I ever finish Aftershock I'll work on this :)

Anywho! Enjoy Zutara Week 2010's "AU"

~DragonMaster65


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